Opinion: Animal ID column leaves questions unanswered

I was reading a back issue of my Buckeye Farm News (March 2008). I have some questions about the OPINION page article “Disease outbreak shows need to track animals,” by Bruce Knight, USDA under secretary for marketing and regulatory programs.

In his article, he states that the premises registration is free. However, he did not mention what the cost of “animal identification and tracing” will be. How will this tracing be accomplished?

How will “animal tracing” improve the food I eat? If I get mad cow disease 15 years from now, how will having a tracing system and a premises registration number improve my health?